


the more i get lost in your face

by quixotix



Series: RoyEd Week 2019 [1]
Category: Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst with a Happy Ending, Drunken Confessions, Drunkenness, Love Confessions, M/M, Roy is a dumbass but we love him anyway, RoyEd Week 2019, Swimming Pools, in a shocking twist of events Edward is the mature one here
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-12
Updated: 2019-08-12
Packaged: 2020-08-20 05:43:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20222752
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quixotix/pseuds/quixotix
Summary: Where better to have a drunken heart-to-heart than your rich friend's pool at three in the morning?Written for day one of RoyEd Week 2019.





	the more i get lost in your face

**Author's Note:**

> If you expected me to post something that wasn't ridiculously self-indulgent and somewhat out of character for the first day of RoyEd Week, then I'm sorry to say you're about to be very disappointed. On the plus side, I'm fairly certain I've managed to include all four of the day prompts in this. The downside to that is that this is the one I poured all my energy into, despite what the quality might have you believe.  
I also realised while proofreading that it almost briefly implies the boys are autistic, which shouldn't surprise me considering I am, so let's all pretend that was me being clever and subtle.
> 
> Title taken from Walk the Moon's 'Timebomb'. Enjoy!

The music from the living room thumped steadily through the floor as Ed leaned over the sink, breathing deeply. Cool water ran down his flushed face, the sound of the tap running a soothing contrast to the noise downstairs. He stepped away from the sink to unlock the bathroom window, pushing it wide open, sighing contentedly at the air that came rushing in.

The Armstrong's were lovely people, and very gracious hosts, and it was hard not to feel like part of the family when invited into their home. But there was only so long Edward could handle a crowd for, and what he was told would be a small, friendly get together was quickly becoming the kind of party he preferred to steer clear of. He could distantly hear his friends laughing and cheering downstairs, all either drunk or quickly on their way to it. The mix of bass-heavy music, the smell of alcohol and perfume, and the large group of people all pressed together to dance had become too much for him, and he'd had to hole himself up in one of the upstairs bathrooms to escape it all.

He rested his elbows on the outer sill and breathed deeply through his nose. For all the cacophony downstairs, it was a lovely night- just warm enough to forgo carrying a jacket, but not so hot as to be stifling. The bathroom faced out over the Armstrong's frankly obscenely vast back garden, and the summery smell of well-tended flowers drifted up towards him with each gentle pass of the wind. 

The family's pool was lit up, casting an ethereal blue glow over the grounds. Ed could just make out corners of well trimmed hedges, the dark spots of roses in bushes…

The shadowed figure making its way across the lawn towards the water. 

Edward startled, pushing himself up from the windowsill. He watched the shape stumble across the grass, occasionally tripping over its own feet, before wobbling its way upright again to continue the slow meander to the pool. 

Closing the window with a solid _ thunk, _Ed considered just forgetting he'd seen anyone out on the lawn at all. He could just return to the party, maybe get a drink of his own, and then wander out comfortable in the knowledge that he had at least made the effort to not seem like party-dodging asshole he actually was. 

But then, he also knew that no one was supposed to be out in the gardens tonight. That was the one thing Alex had been adamant about, and he knew he'd end up feeling guilty if he left now knowing he'd seen someone breaking the rule and did nothing.

And he'd feel even worse if it turned out it was just some drunk dumbass who'd managed to make it outside, only to drown after falling into the pool unsupervised. 

He sighed, pushing his fringe out of his face and resolving to just go and check on whoever it was and be done with it. _ Then _ he could go, have his socially-obligated drink, and head home. Simple. 

He made his way back down the stairs to the main room, dodging the people dancing and running about. He briefly caught a glimpse of Al, arms thrown around Jean Havoc's neck, laughing uproariously as they spun around the centre of the room, before they disappeared behind the crowd again. Ed smiled- at least one of them was having some fun.

He pressed himself against the wall and moved slowly along it, checking all the doors and windows, looking for any that had been unlocked. When that failed, he made his way into the kitchen, and found the gauzy curtains covering the French doors blowing about gently. When he pushed them out of the way, he found the door was unlocked and wide open. 

Edward sighed, stepping out onto the patio, and shutting the door firmly behind him. With any luck, the mysterious figure he'd seen might not have been as drunk as he'd thought. Being able to unlock doors could surely be counted as some level of sobriety, right? 

A loud _ splash _from across the garden cut through the silence, followed by a yelp, and Ed jumped. Definitely someone drunk then. He rushed in the direction of the pool. 

He skidded to a stop at the edge, looking over the expanse of water. The pool lights were strong enough that he could clearly see the shape of someone dark haired moving around under the surface. His mind raced through the potential setbacks of jumping into a body of water with a prosthetic leg, maybe he should run back and get someone, or call for help, if he left now the person in the pool could be dead by the time he got back, and-

There was another splash, followed by a huge gasp of air as the person in the pool came up again, shaking their head to get their hair out of their eyes, sending drops of water shooting around and leaving ripples. They laughed in apparent delight, clearly in no obvious distress, before turning to face their would be saviour.

"Edward!"

Roy Mustang, face flushed with booze, grinned up at Ed, showing off perfect white teeth. Ed let out a tense breath he hadn't even realised he'd been holding, dropping with a groan to sit on his haunches.

"Are you fucking kidding me, Mustang? I saw you listening earlier when Alex said not to go outside."

Roy only laughed again.

"I know, but it was getting too hot inside. So I figured I'd come out here and cool down!"

Edward raised an eyebrow sardonically. 

"Really? I saw you when I was in the bathroom upstairs, wobbling around out here like a baby deer. You thought getting into a big body of water while drunker than I've ever seen you, with no one to keep an eye on you, was a good idea? Did you even think about what could have happened?" 

Roy paused, brows furrowing and lower lip jutting out in an infuriatingly endearing pout. 

"Well, no. I was more focused on cooling down. Overheating can be just as dangerous as drowning, Edward,” he said cheekily. “And besides, it doesn't matter what _ could _have happened. You're here now!"

Ed dropped his head, chin against his chest, and sighed. It was obvious they would only end up going in circles if he tried to talk sense into Roy while he was this drunk, so he put the lecture aside for another time, when it could be mixed with a healthy amount of teasing. After all, Ed was hardly a saint, and it wasn't every day you got to see one of the most poised people you've ever met get so drunk they jumped into a pool fully dressed. 

"Yeah, well, consider yourself lucky I didn’t have to get in after you. I have my phone on me, and if that had gotten fucked up with water for no reason, the replacement would've been coming out of your paycheck." 

Roy gave a hiccuping giggle, waving his arms in a circle and pushing them through the water to send himself floating around in the drunk man's equivalent of a backstroke. Edward got up to pull his aforementioned phone out of his pocket, along with his keys, to drop them on one of the sun loungers. He kicked off shoes and socks, then made his way back to the pools edge, rolling his jeans up just enough to dangle his feet into the water. Roy looked delighted.

"You're staying?"

"Someone has to make sure you don't accidentally inhale any of what you're swimming in, don't they?" Ed grinned, kicking a leg out to splash at the older man. 

Roy slowly waded his way over to settle next to Ed, folding his arms over the pools edge, and settling his chin on top of them. He stared out at the hedges, eyes lidded, and from this close Edward could see how tired he looked. He cleared his throat, catching Roy's attention. He didn't look up at him, but tilted his head so Ed could tell he was listening.

"What really made you want to come out here all alone, anyway, aside from the heat? Were you not having fun? Someone bothering you?" he prompted.

Roy shook his head, hair falling into his face. The water was undoing the straightening of it, causing thick black locks to twist back into gentle curls. He puffed out his cheeks in a tired breath.

"Not at all," he murmured. "Nothing like that. I'm just… not good with noise. And big crowds. If I'm honest, I'm not nearly as good with people as everyone thinks I am. I'm just good at faking it. But tonight… I guess it all just got to be a bit too much."

Ed nodded sympathetically. 

"Yeah, I get that. Sometimes you just gotta step away for a bit. Recharge."

He smirked.

"That doesn't mean you should go jumping into random pools at all hours of the morning, though." 

Roy gasped, pressing a hand to his chest in dramatic, faux indignation.

"My methods of self-soothing are perfectly valid and I won't have you shaming me like this, sir!" 

Edward laughed, and Roy beamed up at him. He reached out to pat Ed's arm.

"Hey. You're really nice, you know that?"

Ed laughed again, awkwardly this time, looking away and focusing instead on the small waves in the pool. Roy was insistent.

"No, I mean it! I know we don't really get along all the time, but you're a good person. A _ great _person. You work so hard, for yourself and your brother and your friends, you should be proud of yourself!" 

Edward flushed, turning wide-eyed to Roy. They stared at each other in silence for a beat, before Ed snorted.

"You really are drunk, huh?"

Roy smiled wearily. 

"Maybe. I still mean every word."

He pressed his cheek onto his folded arm, the other stretching out in front of him to brush his hand over the grass at the edge of the concrete. Avoiding Ed's eyes again.

"Can I tell you a secret?"

Edward said nothing.

“And promise me you won’t freak out?”

Ed stayed quiet.

"I think I'm a little bit in love with you." 

Edward froze, breath catching in his throat. His fingers tensed, nails dragging over the concrete of the pool patio. He clenched his jaw until he felt the ache of it below his ears. 

"You don't have to say anything," Roy hastily added, voice hoarse. "I just needed you to know."

Edward took a shaking breath in.

"_ Needed _ me to know? You make it sound like you've been fuckin' pining after me for ages," he laughed stiffly. Roy forced a laugh of his own in response.

"…I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything."

Silence. 

The water sloshed against the pool walls, as Roy let out a wobbly breath.

"Edward, would you please just say _ something?" _

"Something," Ed responded instinctively. Roy barked out a harsh laugh. 

"Right. Of course. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything, fuck, sorry-" 

He gripped at the edges of the pool, trying to push himself up and out, only for Edward to frantically grab at his shoulders. He could feel the heat of Roy's skin through the soaked fabric of his shirt.

"No! No, don't go anywhere, okay? Just… just give me a second."

He lifted a hand to pinch at the space between his eyes, taking a deep breath and holding it for a few seconds, before meeting Roy's eyes. Roy, too drunk to reign in his expression, looked anxious and embarrassed, and Ed couldn't help feeling like the biggest dick on earth.

"Ok. Ok," he croaked. "I know how that must have seemed. But, like, in my defense? This is possibly one of the most ridiculous situations I've ever been in?"

Roy's brow furrowed, opening his mouth.

"No, no, would you listen for once? It's almost" -he grabbed Roy's wrist, lifting it to check the time on his stupid, fancy watch- "three in the morning. Three in the goddamn morning. And I'm here, sitting in a pool, with one of the most out-of-my-league people I've ever met, who is now confessing to me that they've had feelings for me for, like. A while, maybe? You can't tell me that's not fucking ridiculous, Roy!" 

Roy continued to stare up at him, bemused. Ed groaned.

"Well, ok, maybe not _ ridiculous, _but. Unlikely! That's it. That sounds less dickish. This entire scenario is just. So, so unlikely, and I've kind of got absolutely no idea how to handle it."

Roy was nodding along now, although whether he actually understood any of what the fuck Ed was saying, or if he was just being accomodating, Ed had no idea.

"But the thing is. The thing _ is _ , I'm not saying _ no. _ You understand that? It's just that, I'm kind of exhausted and you're drunk off your ass and we're both kind of idiots right now, so I don't think we're really in the right headspace to be dealing with love confessions. Okay? We can talk about this later, when you're sober and I've had some sleep. I _ promise _we will. But until that happens, I need you to remember, I am under no circumstances saying no, and in fact, it is looking very likely that when you are sober, I'll tell you I feel the same. Okay? Is that okay?"

Roy stared up at him, eyes like saucers, before smiling- small, hesitant and sweet.

"Okay," he choked. Ed smiled back, tucking a lock of dark hair behind Roy's ear and running his thumb over Roy's cheek. 

"Are you... okay?" 

Roy leaned his head into Ed's touch. 

"I'm perfect," he hummed dazedly. 

There was another moment of silence, this one far more bearable than the last.

"Ed? Could I tell you one more secret?"

"I suppose you could."

Roy grinned drunkenly up at him, his teeth bright in the pool lights.

"You're really hot."

Edward blinked, momentarily stunned, before snorting, loudly and unattractively. He bit down on his lip, schooling his features into a mockingly grave expression.

"Well, this puts a new perspective on things, Roy," he intoned. "A love confession I can handle. That's fair enough. But thinking I'm hot? That’s a different matter entirely."

Roy let out a laugh that bordered on a shriek, reaching up to put his hands on Ed's cheeks.

"I'm dead serious, Mustang! This changes things altogether. I'm going to have to reconsider everything now. This is no laughing matter!"

Roy just continued with his hysterical giggling, grabbing at Ed's shoulders and pulling him down into the water with a yelp.

Ed wanted to scold him, to huff at him about how one of his legs was metal, for fuck’s sake, and he shouldn't be in the water with it. 

But at that moment, with Roy's face tucked against his neck, chlorine soaked hair sticking to his face, he found himself perfectly content to just keep laughing.

**Author's Note:**

> Please don't hesitate to let me know if any of the formatting looks weird so I can fix it as soon as possible. Thanks for reading!


End file.
